States tackle gas cost

Maureen Hornung's plea to her legislator about spiraling gasoline prices was to the point: "Isn't there something that can be done? Please?" asked the Marine Corps veteran from Jackson, Wis.

It's a request that's being echoed in statehouses across the nation as constituents signal they've had enough of high prices at the pump - which could become even higher as hurricane Katrina batters the refineries of the Gulf Coast. And politicians are starting to respond, discussing things such as sales-tax holidays on gas, caps on wholesale prices, and even the sale of some turnpikes, whose profits could be used to keep gas taxes in line.

The complaints already have some lawmakers scheduling fall hearings on everything from possible solutions to state funding for low-income heating programs.

Hawaii, which often has the highest gasoline prices in the nation, has already gone beyond talk: Lawmakers have mandated a moving cap on the wholesale price of gasoline - that is, the price as it leaves in-state refineries.

Although Aloha State-style regulation may not happen elsewhere, many other proposals are surfacing:

• In Massachusetts, Secretary of State William Galvin is proposing a moratorium on natural-gas price increases through the winter as well as a suspension of the state sales tax on home insulation. He's also exploring the idea of having the state use its buying power to purchase home heating oil.

• Legislators in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Missouri are talking about state sales-tax holidays on gasoline.

• New Jersey is having discussions about selling state toll roads to keep gas taxes in check.

• In Washington, Sen. Byron Dorgan (D) of North Dakota is proposing that the Federal Trade Commission begin an investigation of gasoline prices. Next week, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing on gasoline prices with testimony from the Bush administration, oil industry, and consumer groups.

The action is, in part, because the pleas, like the one from Ms. Hornung, are becoming more powerful by the day. Hornung is faced with either buying gas for her car so she can get to work or buying groceries. "There are many times that I literally put together some meals that I would not feed anyone else, but it's something," she said in a letter to Wisconsin state Rep. Patricia Strachota. She recounts how she can barely afford to visit her ailing father, who is in his 90s, or attend a celebration for her sister's 45th wedding anniversary.

"Many other people have it much more difficult than I do, but I can't take it anymore," Hornung says.

Last week, the price of oil hovered around $66 a barrel, at one point hitting $68. Energy analysts expect oil and gas prices to shoot to $70 a barrel quickly if there is refinery and pipeline damage from hurricane Katrina. If the price continues even higher, some politicians think it will spur major federal legislation.

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